Try to stray away from the P38a(the RR in your list). They're a pain.

 

How about, before you go looking, tell us and your self what you are going to us a Rover for, second realize you are looking at a somewhat high expense vehicle so you need to be pretty mechanical and or have deep pockets. Then, if you find one and the price is right, take it to a Rover shop for a pre-purchase inspection so you don't buy a number of surprises.
Let us know what you find.

 

Hi guys,

I'll give a report on #1 (one female owner since new, 102k miles, exceptioally clean) in a second.

First, I'm looking for a hauler/beater/occasional off-roader. Off-road means trails, loose inclines, sand dunes, 6-10" of water, and big ol snowy fields whenever possible

I want a car that drives nice and can fit my son's carseat in the back comfortably too.

I'm mechanically inclined - never dove into an engine before besides the peripherals, but tune-ups/brakes/engine mounts/suspension work doesn't scare me away. An occasional $2000 expense would suck, but would not put me in hardship.

...

Report on #1 - beautiful dark green body with one ~4" dent on the driver's side rear door, one minor scrape on the front bumper, and that's it. Paint is super glossy, no other scratches even noticeable. No signs of rust anywhere - even the undercarriage looks like a 3-4 year old car with 30-40k miles in PA. Car spent alot of time in NC, may have helped.

Interior was exceptionally clean. Very modest wear on the driver's seat leather. That's about it - headliner was perfect and spotless. Rear seat looked brand new. Trunk/cargo didn't even have a scratch on the walls and the carpeting looked new.

Maintenance records were in the glove box in a mess, but I went through them. Car has been dealership or indy maintained since new - the owner was very picky. However, there were times it had been driven quite a long time on 5w30 oil - one mechanics note said there was no oil on the dipstick when they changed it and the car was 2,300 miles past it's recommended oil change interval. That being said, I'm very positive this was an easy-driven car. Lots of gaskets replaced, few suspension parts, water pump was done last week. Pretty sure the indy who did the water pump didn't bleed the system right - no signs of overheating, but I could hear noises (i.e. waterfall type sounds).

Every light/electronic I could test worked. I tested the gauge pack by turning the car's accessory power on/off many times - all lights working. It drove smooth and vibration free, no odd sounds.

CDL might be seized up. I could shift it directly left and directly right - no other movements forward of rearward. When I shifted it leftwards, a yellow light with a big X in the middle of the car lit up. That light stayed on after I shifted it back and started driving. It shifted back off when I came back down below 10mph. Frankly, I don't know what that means. I wasn't in low per the shift pattern, and I kept it to 40mph after I had tried that.

Traction control immediately kicked in when I powered hard on a very wet corner. Tires were in great shape, but pretty well worn michelin road tires - they'd need to be replaced fairly soon.

....

In total, this looked like an exceptionally clean 04 Disco. There were 3 flags to me I'd want to get resolved before buying:

1. I'd do a head gasket test to ensure everything looks good there. There's no signs of oil/water combining, but the water pump was changed a week ago and I'm guessing the car hasn't been driven much since then. A visual test is definitely not sufficient.

2. The driver's side seat belt was stuck. Could've been user error on my part in some weird way, but it totally was not coming out. No signs of accidents, so this is odd.

3. The driver's side window sticker has a rental sticker on it as if the car was a rental at some point. Weird.

...

The car drove like an off-road truck, which is not quite my style. It was slower feeling than I expected (I did just step out of a 400hp v8 driven sports car), and a bit jouncier than I love too - again, this is totally subjective and yes I know it's a super capable off-road truck. It's just my observations against my tastes. I could learn to love it. The backseat is a little tight for a rear-facing baby seat (just the angle).

For these reasons, I'm actually really looking forward to the p38 (2000 range rover) which I think I could get for $2k less, albeit with more miles and whatnot.

We'll see. Ya gotta fall in love The p38 test drive is in 3 hours.

 

Make sure all the lights on the dash flash on when you first get in it, alot of electric tape ***** in the dashboard fixs for 3 amigos

 

Waterfall sound is endemic of the head gasket problem.

You can bleed it by raising the coolant bottle.
The coolant bottle is made to snap out.

Keep the bottle way high up.
I take the cap off
and run the engine at 1,500 RPM for about 5 to 10 minutes.
coolant will lower a bit as air goes out.

Add new coolant up to the fill line.
Snap it back in.
Put the lid back on.

Waterfall sound should be gone.

If not - don't buy it.
May be beginning of head gaskets.

You should NOT buy any rover period - if the waterfall sound is there and can't be corrected..

Sorry to be an insistent pain to you.. but..

 

Doesn't sound like your being a pain just that your trying to save this person a big hassle. Its great for him to have those thoughts playing over and over in his mind your saving him headache and money.

 

Yep, love the advice.

Ok gents, it's time for me to make my graceful exit from the disco board.

My tastes are in a more controlled ride, and after test driving a not-particularly spectacular p38 range rover, I have to say it was far more my taste than the disco. It drove much more car-like, it felt faster (which is weird, cause it had a 4.0 vs. the 4.6). The steering was more my taste, and the interior was too.

Disco was great, just more rough and tumble than is my style. Transitioning over to the RR sub-forums. Thanks all!

Joe

 

Did you consider the Disco you drove may be in need of shocks and springs? Usually at that milage/age the ride gets rough for just that reason.

 

Good advice here but I also have the heater running on maximum while doing the above. The helps to ensure you are getting full flow through the heater core.

 

Since a D2 doesn't have a water flow control valve, any place you set the heat is not going to affect the water flow through the core. (design fault IMO but it is how these are built)